League: Gallen comes up trumps to lead in Origin game

Paul Gallen. Photo / Getty Images

New South Wales skipper Paul Gallen appears a certain starter for Wednesday night's State of Origin opener in a boost his teammates claim goes well beyond the astonishing numbers he will likely put up at Etihad Stadium.

Yesterday loomed as D-day for the workaholic prop as he tested out his strained thigh muscle, surviving an opposed session against Melbourne's under-20s side at AAMI Park to remove any doubts over his availability to take on Queensland.

His importance to the Blues is highlighted by the fact that in the only NSW victory from the past six Origin matches, Gallen produced one of the greatest performances in a sky-blue jumper - 31 tackles and a mammoth 211m in last year's game-two victory at ANZ Stadium.

But while the Blues will no doubt welcome his hit-ups and tackles against the Maroons, hooker Robbie Farah declared Gallen's contribution to NSW's hopes of upsetting Queensland couldn't be measured in statistics.

"He's our leader, he's our captain," Farah said just moments after Gallen had completed yesterday's training run.

"He's the player we're going to look to, especially during the tough times - that's what makes him such a great leader.

"Having him there is going to be a big boost for us."

Gallen was originally placed on a restricted training regime due to the knee injury which ruled him out of Cronulla's NRL win over the Storm last weekend, but strained his thigh as he worked his way back to fitness.

He was so concerned about the injury's effect on his teammates he addressed the squad on Friday to reveal the extent of his concerns.

Farah claimed Gallen's absence from the earlier session would have minimal impact on the side's preparations for Wednesday night.

"Gal's the sort of player who you don't need training every day, he's been there and he knows what it's all about," Farah said.

"There's been a bit of speculation about it but within camp we've always been confident he'd be right.

"He talked to us because he's been a bit down and he was a bit worried about it earlier in the week and maybe let it affect him.

"He just assured us that he'd be right and that he was going to try and be a bit more positive.

"It's pretty tough with those sorts of injuries, sometimes it does get to you and you start to worry, especially with such a big game coming up."

Gallen's recovery offset any concerns over the unavailability of 18th man Tariq Sims, who suffered a broken leg in North Queensland's win over Penrith on Saturday night.

The Blues already have Wests Tigers prop Aaron Woods in camp as cover for any late mishap.

- AAP